As I worked on my notes from the road this weekend, I was struck by how a few very visionary people can have such a huge impact upon a community and an entire region. In the cases of both High Point and Mooresville, NC they have gone from being “one industry” towns into diversified, booming towns.
Mooresville had all of its jobs concentrated in the textile industry. The town leaders saw what was happening and started diversifying away from this dying industry. Today it is a much diversified industrial, racing, recreational, medical and retailing center. It has growing clusters in racing and with Lowe’s vendors. The best days of Mooresville lay in its future.
High Point had two clusters from the turn of the 20th Century, furniture and hosiery. They turned one of these into the International Home Furnishings Market, which literally doubles the size of the town for two weeks/year.
Not resting on their laurels, High Point has continued to forge ahead continuing to diversify its base. Today it has growing clusters in furniture, fabrics, photography and bio tech. Like Mooresville, High Point’s future is very bright.
The question that continues to roll around in my mind is: What allows some towns like this to have such a clear vision, taking their community to a higher level and thus creating tremendous opportunities for many of its citizens?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment